Will Wagener figured out the putting greens at Glenview Park Golf Club a little quicker than Kieran Low did Wednesday.
But the two Evanston standouts still ended up in the same place.
Wagener and Low both shot 73s to earn a tie for 6th place overall at the Central Suburban League South division championship golf tournament. Their finishes sparked the Wildkits to team score of 307, and a fourth place overall finish in the team standings when dual meet results were figured into the mix.
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New Trier (289) topped the field, ahead of Glenbrook North (295), Glenbrook South (296 on their home course), Evanston, Maine South (319) and Deerfield (321). GBN freshman Asher Moon fired an even par 70 to claim medalist honors by one stroke.
Overnight rain that dampened the greens led to putting difficulties for many challengers, including Wagener and Low. But Wagener, a senior, and Low, a sophomore, rose to the occasion for the Kits. They tied with Nick Meyer of New Trier, who also fired a 73.
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Evanston also counted an 80 by junior Harrison Stracks, an 81 by senior David Castellini and an 82 by sophomore Nick Bonaguro. Soph Miles Gomberg (84) and senior McHenry Mason (86) also competed for ETHS.
Wagener’s round featured a couple of birdies --- on the No. 3 hole and No. 11 hole --- and steady par golf on 11 other holes. Low, on the other hand, used his birdie prowess to recover from a slow start that found the sophomore 4 shots over par through the first 6 holes. He finished with birdies on No. 1, No. 2, No. 12 and No. 16.
“I started out pretty tough. I just couldn’t make any putts,” said Low, who was runnerup in the CSL South tourney as a freshman. “I wouldn’t say the greens were slow, but I had trouble adjusting mentally to the speed at the beginning of the round.
“But the reason I’m a lot better this year is because my mental game and my putting got better. You’re going to have doubts (about yourself) in any tournament, but it’s about how you manage those doubts and get through it. I feel like I have more confidence in myself now, that I believe I can come back and trust myself to get birdies.”
Wagener is aiming for a strong finish after his scores didn’t always figure into the team totals through the first few matches in August.
“My mental confidence is better this year, and once I finally shot a couple of good scores, I was able to carry that through the season,” he said. “I shot an 87 at the CSL Showcase, but I wasn’t hitting the ball horrible. I just had to stay mentally strong.
“I really wanted to finish in the top 10 today. I made a lot of putts inside of 10 feet, and that really contributed to my score. The greens were pretty slow. I just had to get used to it and I figured out the speed pretty early, so that helped me out.
“This is definitely a confidence boost for me. My goal is to make it Downstate and I know now that it’s still possible.”
Evanston head coach Jed Curtis noted that his squad outscored rivals Maine South and Deerfield after dropping dual meets against them during the regular season.
“I’m really proud of the way we played today, and it feels good to avenge some of those dual losses,” said Curtis. “And to finish in the top 10 in this conference is really huge. I couldn’t be happier for Kieran and Will.
“David Castellini had a rough start, but he finished just 1-over on his last 9, so that was pretty exciting, too.”
